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SCUBAPRO Sunday – First Submarine Commando Raid

Sunday, August 14th, 2022

On August 17, the USS Nautilus and USS Argonaut were off the coast of Makin Atoll in the pacific. They were carrying 221 Marine Raiders. The Raider’s objectives were to destroy the Japanese garrison and installations, take prisons so they could be interrogated, and finally, the Gilbert Islands must be reconnoitered. It was also meant to divert Japanese attention and reinforcements from the Allied amphibious invasions on Guadalcanal and Tulagi.

Even with two 100-meter super-subs, A and B Company could only fit 221 men, so they left without a platoon from each. Maj. James Roosevelt, the president’s 35-year-old son, was one of Carlson’s targets. After serving as FDR’s political consultant and covert diplomat, the young Roosevelt joined the Marines. As a Raider enthusiast, he convinced his father to let him join.

Raiders were stuffed inside vacant torpedo tubes during travel. Submarine ventilation techniques couldn’t prevent thin air and high temperatures. The boats would surface for ten minutes twice a day to let the Raiders exercise and breathe fresh air before ducking back into the Pacific to avoid air assault.

The two submarines surfaced outside Makin’s coral reef at midnight on August 16–17 to find turbulent conditions. The first two LCRL rubber boats sank in the surf. The remaining launches’ uninsulated 6-horsepower engines were flooded with seawater and failed to ignite. Carlson felt his two-pronged approach would be too difficult to accomplish in the inclement weather and ordered A and B company to land together. In the chaos, the boat carrying Lt. Oscar Peatross and 11 Raiders missed the orders and headed west.

Carlson’s Raiders landed about 5 AM after battling the waves for an hour, with some troops scattered but undetected. Carlson’s invention was to divide his squad into three fireteams, each with one rifleman with a semi-automatic M1 Garand for distance shooting, another with a Thompson submachinegun for close-range firepower, and a Browning Automatic Rifle gunner to give covering fire. Heavy armaments included.30 caliber light machine guns and.55 caliber Boys anti-tank rifles were requisitioned from the Canadian Army by Carlson.

On landing, a Raider unintentionally fired his BAR, ruining any chance for surprise. The garrison’s commander, Chief Petty Officer Kyuzaburou Kanemitsu, had been alert days earlier. His men deployed by bike and truck to fight the American invaders. Misadventures continued when the Raiders kidnapped a Japanese soldier but shot him when he escaped.

Carlson met Makin locals who spoke pidgin English. They were pleased to help the Americans and said 160 to 300 Japanese were on the island, and they were ready. The Raiders maintained their march until 6 AM when Lt. Le Francois’ scouts sighted Japanese forces dismounting from vehicles.

Le Francois ambushed his platoon in a breadfruit grove on high ground. Sgt. Clyde Thomason adjusted the men’s positions as Japanese skirmishers neared. When the Japanese got close, the marines opened fire, killing the closest attackers and exploding the truck’s engine with an anti-tank rifle.

The Japanese answer was fatal. Four Type 92 Lewis machine guns raked Raider positions, killing Sgt. Thomason and injuring Le Francois. Posthumously, Thomason became the first enlisted Marine to win the Medal of Honor. Camouflaged shooters killed Lt. Jerry Holtom and four radio operators among palm palms.

Carlson quickly added the 2nd Platoon, which lost nine men in 15 minutes, and B Company. Raider machine gunner Cpl. Leon Chapman fired 400 rounds into a Japanese machine gun nest at 200 meters. After inspecting the silenced weapon, Chapman “nearly threw up” when he discovered he had slain a dozen Japanese who had sacrificed themselves to man it.

Twelve of Peatross’ forces landed at the second landing zone and proceeded uncontested into the barracks and the defender’s command position. An isolated squad shot six astonished Japanese before being held down by an LMG crew. Pvt. Vernon Castle was struck multiple times as he advanced, but he threw a grenade and killed three before dying.

After that, Peatross’ marines fired a car speeding towards the command post, blew up a radio and a truck full of ammo, and retreated to the Nautilus, losing two more troops. In the chaos, they killed Kanimetsu, who destroyed confidential documents and conveyed the message, “We are dying defending the island.”

The Nautilus began bombarding Japanese positions with two dozen shells when Carlson learned from natives that hostile ships were in the lagoon. Unwilling to risk a shore battery’s fire, the Nautilus arced 65 6-inch shells into the lagoon. By luck, indirect fire sank two ships, igniting a transport and a patrol boat and mistaking a hostile plane for a bird, the submarine dove, ending naval gunfire support. The Japanese assaulted the Raiders, attempting to swarm them failed, and the assailants were all killed at close range. Undeterred, the bugle played again, and the Japanese launched a second suicide strike, wiping out Kanimetsu’s marine platoon. A few dozen survivors continued to shoot intermittently. Fearing more reinforcements, Carlson chose not to strike the Japanese position. At 1:30, air support arrived. Twelve Mitsubishi F1M floatplanes bombed and strafed the island for an hour, driving the Raiders fleeing but not inflicting any fatalities. Then an F1M and a Kawanishi flying boat landed in the lagoon. The Raiders fired machine guns and anti-tank rifles at the aircraft, setting it on fire. The seaplane with scores of men managed to land. The intensity of incoming fire must have given the pilot second thoughts as he taxied on the water and took off again before landing.

The colonel decided to withdraw to submarines at 7 PM as planned. When they returned to the ocean, his troops discovered their boats’ motors had stopped working, and the waves and weather made it difficult to paddle back to the submarines. Exhausted Raiders dropped their ineffective launch motors and spent five hours trying to force through severe waves, losing most of their weapons and supplies. Eleven of 18 boats reached the American subs. By nightfall, Carlson, Roosevelt, and 70 injured Raiders remained on Butaritari. Individual boats continued to battle the waves the following day, including one with Roosevelt onboard. A five-person crew led by Sergeant Allard volunteered to row back to the atoll with a rope the Raiders could use to board the submarine. A squadron of Japanese jets bombed the Nautilus halfway through its launch. The subs crash-dove, and the jets strafed the rescue squad, killing them. After reassessing the situation, Carlson opted to finish the mission on Makin. The Raiders scavenged Japanese weapons to replace those washed away and sabotaged a derelict seaplane facility while avoiding air assaults. They burned much of the facility and 1,000 aviation fuel drums. Carlson decided his forces had a greater chance of reaching the submarines from the lagoon because it had no shore armament.

He encouraged the Nautilus’s captain to enter the lagoon using a semaphore lamp and a dinner chat they had earlier. The Raiders paddled on a raft of three launches, two working outboard engines, and local canoes as outriggers. The Indians gave them a canoe and buried their dead in exchange for USMC combat knives. The new boat reached the submarines, and the Raiders set sail for home. Among the 17 wounded soldiers, four surgeries were performed on the submarine’s mess table. The injured soldiers all survived.

On August 27, Carlson’s Raiders returned to Pearl Harbor to a hero’s welcome. They reported 18 dead and 12 MIAs and killed 160 enemies. According to Japanese records, 46 base personnel and an undisclosed number on Japanese boats and planes died.

Posted in Advertiser, Guest Post, History, Maritime, Navy, USMC | 1 Comment »

SCUBAPRO Sunday – Operation Magic

Sunday, August 7th, 2022

If you follow history, there is a lot said about how different battles were, this group took this hill, or this guy did this. But a lot needs to be said about what goes on behind the scenes. While the United States Army Signals Intelligence Section (SIS) and the Navy Communication Special Unit worked in tandem to monitor, intercept, decode, and translate Japanese messages during World War II, Operation Magic was the cryptonym used to refer to the United States’ efforts to break Japanese military and diplomatic codes. The Office of Strategic Services received the intelligence information acquired from the transmissions and forwarded it to military headquarters (OSS). It is widely acknowledged that the capacity to interpret and understand Japanese communications was a crucial component of the Allied triumph in the Pacific.

Early in 1939, the United States began its efforts to decipher Japanese diplomatic and military communications, even before the outbreak of World War II in Europe. In 1923, a United States Navy intelligence officer got a contraband copy of the Japanese Imperial Navy Secret Operating Code from World War I. Afterward, after all of the additive code keys had been discovered, the codebook was photographed and sent to the Research Desk, arranged in red folders by the cryptologists. The simple additive code was given the name “Red” in honor of the directories in which it was initially kept.

In 1930, the Japanese updated the Red code with Blue, a more sophisticated code for high-level communications. However, because the new code was too similar to its predecessor, cryptologists in the United States could fully decrypt the new code in less than two years after its introduction. At the onset of World War II, the Japanese were still using both Red and Blue color codes for various communications purposes. Listening stations were set up all across the Pacific by the United States military intelligence to monitor ship-to-ship, command-to-fleet, and land-based communications between ships.

The Japanese acquired encryption and security assistance from Nazi Germany after World War II erupted across Europe. Since 1935, the Germans have known that U.S. intelligence is monitoring and decoding Japanese communications, but they have not instantly informed the Japanese of this fact. Later, Germany delivered a modified version of its iconic Enigma encryption machine to Japan to assist the country in securing its communications. As a result of this, American intelligence was unable to understand Japanese intercepts. The tedious job of United States cryptologists was restarted.

Cryptanalysts in the United States gave the new code the moniker Purple. Purple, used to decrypt numerous variants of the original Enigma code, was the most severe obstacle to American and British intelligence throughout World War II.

After receiving information from Polish and Swedish cryptologists, the British military intelligence cryptanalysis unit at Bletchley Park became the first in the world to decrypt the German Enigma code in 1942. They then created advanced decoding bombes and the world’s first programmable computer to aid in the deciphering of the complex Enigma cipher. By 1943, British intelligence could use information obtained through translated Enigma intercepts received in near real-time.

For years, cryptologists in the United States sought to break the Purple code by hand. However, the format of Japanese signals, always opening with the exact introductory phrase, enabled code breakers to establish the sequencing of the multi-rotor Japanese cipher machine. By 1941, code breakers in the United States had made significant headway in cracking the Purple code, and they had gained the capacity to decipher multiple lines of intercepted messages. The procedure remained sluggish, and the information obtained from Purple was frequently outdated when translated into another language.

United States military intelligence became aware of British victories against Germany’s Enigma machine and requested that their allies share code-breaking information. Top Bletchley Park cryptographers and engineers were dispatched to the United States to assist in training code breakers and constructing decoding bombes. But they were highly protective of and didn’t want anyone to know about their Enigma code-breaking activities (codenamed Operation Ultra), which involved Colossus, the Bletchley Park decoding computer, and which they were involved.

United States intelligence made significant headway against Purple in a short period, thanks to the assistance of the British. A copy of the Japanese Purple machine, created in 1939 by American cryptologist William Friedman, was used to adapt a German Enigma bombe to decode Japanese Purple, which was then used to decode the Japanese Purple machine. Even though each message’s settings had to be determined by hand, United States intelligence improved its ability to read Japanese code with greater ease and timelier by 1942, six months after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and the United States’ entry into World War II.

With the help of their vast network of listening stations in the Pacific, the United States intelligence services could intercept and decode various other sorts of communications. In conjunction with JN-25 intercepts, the Diplomatic Purple transmissions, another broken Japanese Navy code, provided critical information to the United States military command about Japanese fortifications at Midway. The intercepts from Operation Magic provided valuable input during the ensuing Battle of Midway, which helped to turn the tide of the Pacific War in the allied forces’ favor and ultimately win the war. Approximately a year later, Purple intercepts provided the United States with intelligence about a diplomatic aircraft on which Japanese General Yamamoto, the mastermind behind the Pearl Harbor assault, was scheduled to travel. The Japanese aircraft were shot down by American planes.

Operation Magic was a vital source of intelligence information in both the Pacific and European theaters of conflict during World War II. Diplomatic messages between Berlin and Tokyo, encrypted with the Enigma and Purple codes, provided British and United States intelligence with information about German defenses in France during the Second World War. This information aided leaders in their preparations for the D-Day invasion of Normandy in June 1944.

The Japanese government remained uninformed despite the fact that the United States had broken the Purple code. According to the United States government, Japanese Imperial forces continued to employ the principles decrypted by Operation Magic throughout the war and in the weeks following the Japanese surrender in 1945.

Posted in Advertiser, Guest Post, History, ISR, Maritime | 4 Comments »

SCUBAPRO Sunday – Happy Birthday U.S. Coast Guard

Sunday, July 31st, 2022

The formal history of the Coast Guard dates to August 4, 1790, when the first Congress ordered the building of 10 vessels to enforce federal tariff and trade regulations and combat smuggling. The Coast Guard, also known as the Revenue Marine and the Revenue Cutter Service in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, rose in number and responsibility as the country grew. The Coast Guard is one of the federal government’s oldest agencies, and until Congress founded the Navy Department in 1798, it was the country’s only afloat armed force. Throughout their lengthy history, the Coast Guard has defended the country and has proudly served in all of the country’s battles. Even now, our national defense responsibilities are one of our most critical functions.

The service was given its current name in 1915 when Congress combined the Revenue Cutter Service and the Life-Saving Service to create a unified maritime service focused on saving lives at sea and enforcing the nation’s maritime laws. When President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered the transfer of the Lighthouse Service to the Coast Guard in 1939, the Coast Guard began to maintain the country’s aids to marine navigation, including running the nation’s lighthouses.

During World War II, the Coast Guard’s participation in amphibious operations was possibly the most critical war-related task the organization undertook. Surprisingly, the Coast Guard operated about 350 naval ships, including 76 LSTs, 21 cargo and attack-freight ships, 75 frigates, and 31 types of transport. In addition, the Coast Guard had almost 800 cutters, nearly 300 Army ships, and thousands of amphibious assault vessels on standby.

A group of small landing craft sped toward the beaches of Guadalcanal on September 27, 1942. About 500 troops from Col Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller’s 1st Battalion, 7th Marines were huddled on the beach, fighting for their life.

The Marines had landed on the beach earlier that day by the same group of landing craft, and now they were being retrieved. Coast Guard Signalman 1st Class Douglas Munro guided his LCVP between the departing Marines and the Japanese as the LCVPs (Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel) and LCMs (Landing Craft, Mechanized) approached the shore. Munro permitted the landing craft to safely evacuate all the Marines, including the injured, by placing his craft between the men on the beach and the enemy.

Munro guided his vessel away from the beach as the last men boarded. When the skies were nearly clear, Japanese gunfire struck Munro, killing him instantly. Munro received the Medal of Honor after his death. Given the Coast Guard’s rescuing legacy and the pivotal role the service played during WWII, it’s fitting that the service’s lone Medal of Honor recipient was involved in not only a rescue but also an amphibious operation.

The Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation of the Commerce Department was permanently transferred to the Coast Guard in 1946, bringing merchant marine licensing and merchant vessel safety under their jurisdiction.

The Coast Guard also played a significant role in Vietnam, doing everything from installing aids to navigation to supporting the war on the rivers and in the sky. The installed and manned Long-Range Aids to Navigation (LORAN) stations, allowing mariners and aviators to fix their positions correctly. The initial goal of the LORAN system was to offer electronic aids to mariners and aviators in places where there were no surface aids, relatively unexplored waters, or skies that were regularly clouded.

The Navy’s campaign to minimize coastal infiltration was aided by Coast Guard cutters, forcing communists to rely on the Ho Chi Minh Trail to maintain their insurgency in the south. According to wartime records, Coast Guard cutters boarded a quarter-million junks and sampans and took part in 6,000 naval firing exercises. The LORAN station in Tan My, Vietnam (U.S. Coast Guard) port missions caused significant damage to the enemy.

The Coast Guard-Air Force Aviator Exchange Program brought together Coast Guard and Air Force pilots. The program included two Coast Guard C-130 pilots, while the rest of the aviators were HH-3 helicopter pilots. The first of several Coast Guard helicopter pilots were posted to the Air Force’s 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron at Da Nang in the spring of 1968. Four Silver Star Medals, 15 Distinguished Flying Crosses, and 86 Air Medals were among the medals and awards given to Coast Guard aviators as a result.

The Coast Guard has been part of the Department of Homeland Security since 2003, serving as the nation’s front-line agency for enforcing maritime laws, preserving the marine environment and the country’s enormous coastline and ports, and saving lives. Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the Coast Guard underwent significant modifications as part of the War on Terror. Before the 9/11 attacks, the Coast Guard used boat stations and cutters to safeguard U.S. ports, waterways, and coastlines. After the attacks, the Coast Guard shifted resources to serve additional maritime security functions required in the post-9/11 environment.

President George W. Bush signed the Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA) in 2002 to secure the nation’s ports and waterways from terrorist threats. The MTSA established a Coast Guard maritime security unit as part of the Department of Homeland Security’s layered approach to protecting seaports and waterways. The Coast Guard formed Maritime Safety and Security Teams (MSSTs) in the same year to assist the Ports, Waterways, and Coastal Security missions and provide non-compliant vessel boarding capabilities for service missions. Waterside security, marine law enforcement, and K-9 explosives detection units are among the 11 MSST teams that exist today.

Military force protection, U.N. General Assemblies, national political conventions, international economic summits, disaster relief efforts, and major sporting events such as the Super Bowl have been MSST duties. They play a significant role in the war on drugs and keeping our streets safe. In F.Y. 2019, the Coast Guard removed 207.9 metric tons of cocaine and more than 63,000 pounds of marijuana from getting into the U.S. and Canada.

Lastly and possibly most importantly, they responded to 19,790 Search and Rescue cases, saved 3,560 lives, and more than $77 million in property. Some of the 3,560 are fishermen in Alaska, and the Coastie’s put their lives on the line every day to keep them safe.

Happy Birthday Coast Guard

Posted in Advertiser, Guest Post, History, Maritime | 2 Comments »

SCUBAPRO SUNDAY – The Real USMC Birthday

Sunday, July 10th, 2022

It’s a fact that most Marines are probably unaware of but a fact nonetheless, according to the Marine Corps History Division, which records the service’s official institutional and operational history.

The Second Continental Congress passed a resolution establishing two Continental Marines battalions on November 10, 1775, which the Corps now celebrates as its official birthday, marking 247 years of existence.

But as the History Division notes in its Brief History of the United States Marine Corps, the Continental Marine Corps was disbanded after the Revolutionary War “for reasons of the economy” in 1783 and ceased to exist for the next 15 years.

“The government auctioned off warships, and the Continental Marines ceased to exist,” military historian Chester Hearn told The Camp Pendleton Patch. “Major Samuel Nicholas, the first Marine officer, returned to his former occupation as owner of Tun Tavern in Philadelphia.”

It wasn’t until July 11, 1798, that Congress established a service known as the United States Marine Corps under the command of the Navy. The act passed by the 5th Congress and signed into law by President John Adams created the nearly 900-man strong Marine Corps, which consisted of one major, four captains, 28 lieutenants, about 100 sergeants, and corporals, and more than 700 privates.

And for the next 123 years, the Marine Corps recognized its birthday as July 11. As the History Division notes, “an unidentified newspaper clipping from 1918 refers to the celebration of the 120th birthday of the Marine Corps on July 11 ‘as usual with no fuss.'”

Then, in 1921, the good idea fairy caught the attention of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. John A. Lejeune, and suggested the service celebrate its earlier birthdate despite that 15-year gap. From the History Division:On October 21, 1921, Maj Edwin McClellan, Officer-in-Charge, Historical Section, Headquarters Marine Corps, sent a memorandum to Major General Commandant John A. Lejeune, suggesting the actual birthday on November 10, 1775, be declared a Marine Corps holiday to be celebrated throughout the Corps. Maj McClellan further suggested that a dinner be held in Washington D.C. to commemorate the event. Guests would include prominent men from the Marine Corps, Army, and Navy, and descendants of the Revolution.

Accordingly, on November 1, 1921, Maj Gen Lejeune issued Marine Corps Order No. 47, Series 1921. The order summarized the history, mission, and tradition of the Corps and directed that it be read to every command on November 10 each subsequent year in honor of the birthday of the Marine Corps. This order has been duly carried out.

Hey, look on the bright side: now you can get drunk and celebrate the birth of the Marine Corps twice a year. So, Semper Fidelis and Happy Early birthday!

Posted in Guest Post, History, USMC | 1 Comment »

Last WWII Medal of Honor Recipient To Lie In Honor At Capital Rotunda

Wednesday, July 6th, 2022

According a joint announcement from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority LeadeR Chuck Schumer, World War Two Veteran and retired Marine CW4 Woodrow “Woody” Williams will lie in honor in the United States Capitol Rotunda.

Photo from National WWII Museum.

Woody Williams, the last surviving World War II Medal of Honor recipient, was a hero of World War II, serving in the United States Marine Corps and fighting in the Pacific Theater. Best known for his valiant service at the Battle of Iwo Jima, Woody was awarded the military’s highest decoration for combat service, the Medal of Honor. After the war, he devoted his life to caring for veterans and their families, working to bring Gold Star Families Memorial Monuments to more than a hundred communities across the country.

“Woody Williams embodied the best of America: living a life of duty, honor and courage,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi said. “His fearless valor at Iwo Jima and throughout the Pacific Theater helped power an American victory over fascism in the Second World War and earned him a deeply deserved Medal of Honor. When Woody lies in honor under the Capitol Dome, it will be with immense gratitude for his service that the Congress will pay tribute to this legendary hero — and all of the patriots who fought for our nation in World War II.”

“Woody Williams was an American hero who embodied the best of our country and the greatest generation,” said Majority Leader Schumer. “This is only a small tribute to someone who has made as impactful contributions to America as Woody and all our brave soldiers who fought against tyranny and defended our country in World War II. Whether it was for his acts of bravery in combat or his tireless advocacy for all veterans and their families, Woody made our entire country, especially his fellow West Virginians, proud.”

Currently, the casket of the West Virginia native is in the State Capitol in Charleston. CW4 Williams will take his place of honor in the nation’s Capitol after Congress returns from their summer recess.

H/T to W McN

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SCUBAPRO Sunday – The USS Hannah

Sunday, July 3rd, 2022

As we come up on the 4th of July, I think it is always good to remember where you came from. An army general purchased the first ship of what would become the Continental Navy. George Washington used his own money for the initial Continental Navy vessel. On April 24, 1775, he purchased a schooner and gave her the name Hannah. She was assigned the mission of capturing Royal Navy supply ships attempting to reach Boston while the city was under siege. On September 7, Hannah was successful in capturing the hostile barge, HMS Hoy.

It is believed that the schooner Hannah was the first American naval vessel to be armed during the American Revolution. Hannah is also considered the vessel that laid the foundation for the United States Navy. Hannah Glover was her owner, and she was given that name in honor of John Glover’s wife. They lived in Marblehead, Massachusetts. Most of her crew was comprised of people from the nearby town of Marblehead. General George Washington was the one who decided to put the schooner into the service of the American Army. On September 2, 1775, Washington gave Nicolson Broughton the commission to command the Hannah and ordered the ship to engage in combat operations against the British. On September 5, 1775, Hannah departed from the harbor of Beverly, Massachusetts. Still, two days later, when she was being pursued by the HMS Lively and another British vessel, she sought refuge in the harbor of Gloucester, Massachusetts. Hannah was successful in capturing the British sloop Unity after leaving Gloucester Harbor. Hannah’s brief naval career ended on October 10, 1775, when the British sloop Nautilus ran her aground under the guns of a small American fort near Beverly. This brought an end to Hannah’s service in the navy. Hannah was saved from destruction and capture following an engagement between the British ship and the townspeople supported by the fort. However, she was soon decommissioned because General Washington had found more suitable vessels for his battles. This historic schooner was said to have called both the city of Beverly and the town of Marblehead its home port at one point. Each claimed the honor of being “the Birthplace of the American Navy” from the time Hannah was in service until an old plaque was discovered in the Philadelphia Navy Yard proclaiming Marblehead to be where the United States Navy was founded. The plaque states that Marblehead was where the US Navy was established.

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24 SOW Observes 10th Anniversary at Hurlburt

Sunday, July 3rd, 2022

Hurlburt Field, Fla. —

12 June marked the 10th anniversary of the 24 SOW at Hurlburt Field. The “at Hurlburt” is key here as the wing’s lineage dates back to its original establishment as the US Army Air Forces 24th Composite Wing (Special) 19 November 1942 and activation on 25 December 1942. Upon activation at Camp Olympia, Reykjavik, the wing’s first mission involved the defense of Iceland during World War II through 15 June 1944. The wing’s original weapon systems included P-38, P-39 fighter aircraft (1942-43), and P-40 and P-47 fighter aircraft (1944-44).

Prior to activation at Hurlburt in 2012, the wing is best known for its many mission areas in the Caribbean and the Panama Canal Zone where it served many years as the host unit at both Howard and Albrook Air Force Bases. Between 1946 and 1948 the wing supervised large numbers of major and minor bases and Air Force units in the Caribbean area from Puerto Rico to British Guiana. Organized again in 1967 in the Canal Zone, the wing assumed operation and maintenance responsibilities for Howard and Albrook Air Force Bases (1967-1987 and 1989-1999) and special operations mission sets that included air transport, paramilitary operations, exercise participation, civic actions in Central and South America, search and rescue missions, humanitarian operations, mercy missions, aeromedical evacuation; as well as the support of Army Special Forces, U.S. military assistance units, and training of Latin American air forces. From activation in 1967 until mid-1972, the 24 Wing also operated the USAF Tropic Survival School at Albrook.

From 1992-1999, the wing operated as the senior USAF organization in Panama, replacing the previous command and division-level Air Force host units. In June 1992, it began operating the only C-21, CT-43, C-27, and special mission C-130s in Air Combat Command (ACC). The wing also provided mission command and support to multi-service units directed by United States Southern Command and United States Southern Air Force, 1992-1999. Mission areas included counternarcotics operations, aerial command and control, intra-theater airlift, security assistance, and the general defense of the Panama Canal. During 1999, the wing conducted base closures and unit inactivations in compliance with the Panama Canal Treaty of 1977 that stipulated all U.S. military forces would depart Panama by 31 December 1999.

With the 24 SOW’s activation at Hurlburt 10 years ago, AFSOC selected the “24” from the inactive scrolls of Air Force historical units because of its long history of and close association with nearly all special operations mission areas. From the mountaintops in Afghanistan to the depths of an infamous cave in Thailand, the 24 SOW conducted operations ranging from the fiercest types of combat to the purest forms of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

At activation, the 24 SOW kept its awesome lineage alive and, as importantly, it inherited the history of Air Force Special Tactics. After being activated at Hurlburt Field and assigned to Air Force Special Operations Command, the wing comprised of two Special Tactics groups, a training squadron, and operational squadrons with a mission to organize, train, and equip Special Warfare Airmen for rapid global employment to enable airpower success.

Since 2012, the 24 SOW has been an integral part of every major joint operation in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, Africa, Europe, and Pacific theaters of operation. Special Tactics, from its beginning, has provided global access capabilities inherent to no other unit in the Air Force or its sister services – capabilities absolutely essential to effective military operations. The 24 SOW also provides unique rapid deployment, precision strike, personnel recovery, special reconnaissance and battlefield surgery capabilities. Today the wing’s primary weapon system is not an aircraft weapon system typical in most Air Force wings. Today, and since 2012, the 24 SOW’s weapon system is the men and women who provide and sustain these capabilities for AFSOC and the Joint Force.

Since its activation 10 years ago, members of the wing and its predecessor unit, the 720th Special Tactics Group, have been recognized with our nation’s highest valor awards including the Medal of Honor, 12 Air Force Crosses, 57 Silver Stars, and hundreds of Bronze Stars. This level of individual recognition makes the 24 SOW the highest decorated community in the U.S. Air Force in the modern era. On this special anniversary of the 24 SOW at Hurlburt, the wing remains a forever reverent organization and honors its members who made the ultimate sacrifice in both training and combat. Perhaps the AFSOC commander Lt Gen James Slife stated it best, “Within AFSOC – and the Air Force writ-large – no group [has] paid a greater human toll and carried a heavier deployment burden of the last two decades than AFSOC’s Special Tactics Force.”

By Charlie Newell, 24 SOW Public Affairs

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President Biden to Award Four Soldiers the Medal of Honor

Saturday, July 2nd, 2022

WASHINGTON — Four Vietnam War Soldiers who repeatedly put themselves in harm’s way to defend injured comrades will be awarded the Medal of Honor during a ceremony at the White House on July 5, 2022, according to the White House.

Two of the recipients, Spc. 5 Dwight Birdwell and Maj. John Duffy, rebuffed multiple enemy attacks while leading fellow Soldiers and allies to safety. Both Birdwell and Duffy sustained wounds but continued to engage the enemy.

Spc. 5 Dennis Fujii, a combat medic, refused rescue attempts after facing a wave of enemy fire, remaining on the ground to treat the wounded.

Staff Sgt. Edward Kaneshiro, an infantryman, who will receive the medal posthumously, helped rescue trapped survivors of two U.S. squads who had been ambushed by enemy forces in a Kim Son Valley village. Kaneshiro later died while continuing his service in Vietnam.

KANESHIRO

In a village near Phu Huu 2, a large North Vietnamese contingent ambushed two squads from Kaneshiro’s platoon on Dec. 1, 1966. Kaneshiro, a squad leader with Troop C, First Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, was scouting land east of the village at the time of the attack.

Kaneshiro directed his squad toward the sound of the fire, where enemy forces had killed his platoon leader and several other Soldiers, and had his two sister squads pinned down. Kaneshiro swiftly read the situation and realized that the fire from a machine-gun bunker and large concealed trench had to be stopped if anyone were to survive. Kaneshiro deployed his men to cover, then crawled forward, alone, to attack the enemy force.

While flattened to the ground he was somehow able to throw a grenade through the aperture of the bunker, eliminating it as a threat. Next he leapt into the trench and single-handedly worked his way down its entire 35-meter length, destroying one group of enemies with his rifle and two more enemy groups with grenades.

Kaneshiro’s assault allowed the pinned-down squads to survive and prepare their casualties for evacuation. His actions enabled the orderly extrication and reorganization of the platoon.

Kaneshiro would continue his tour in Vietnam until his passing on March 6, 1967, when he died by enemy gunshot wound at the age of 38.

BIRDWELL

On Jan. 31, 1968, a large North Vietnamese element attacked Birdwell’s unit — Troop C, 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry, 25th Infantry Division — at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, just outside of Saigon on the first day of what would later become known as the Tet Offensive. Birdwell’s unit bore the brunt of the initial attack, which destroyed many of the unit’s vehicles and incapacitating Birdwell’s tank commander. Under heavy small-arms fire, Birdwell moved his commander to a place of safety and slid into the commander’s hatch.

Armed with the tank’s machine gun and cannon and his M16 rifle, Birdwell fired upon the North Vietnamese. When he exhausted all of his ammunition, Birdwell dismounted and maneuvered to his squadron commander’s helicopter, which had been downed by enemy fire, and retrieved two machine guns and ammunition, with which he and a comrade suppressed the enemy. His machine gun was struck by enemy rounds and exploded, injuring his face and torso.

Birdwell refused evacuation and moved amongst the disabled vehicles and defensive positions, collecting ammunition to distribute to the remaining defenders. While under harassing fire, Birdwell led a small group of defenders past the enemy force and engaged the enemy with hand grenades, disrupting their assault until reinforcements arrived. Birdwell continued to treat wounded until he was ordered to seek medical attention.

FUJII

As a crew chief serving with the 237th Medical Detachment, 61st Medical Battalion, 67th Medical Group, Fujii engaged in rescue operations that transported injured South Vietnamese personnel over Laos and the Republic of Vietnam on Feb. 18, 1971. During a second approach to a hot landing zone, the enemy concentrated a barrage of flak at Fujii’s helicopter, causing it to crash in the conflict area, injuring Fujii.

A second helicopter was able to land and load all of his fellow downed airmen. However, Fujii was not able to board because the enemy directed fire on him. Rather than endanger the lives aboard the second helicopter, Fujii waved it off to leave the combat area. Subsequent attempts to rescue him were aborted due to the violent anti-aircraft fire. Fujii secured a radio and informed the aviators in the area that the landing zone was too hot for further evacuation attempts. Fujii remained as the lone American on the ground, treating the injuries of South Vietnam troops throughout the night and the next day.

On the night of Feb. 19, their perimeter came under assault by an enemy regiment and artillery fire. He called U.S. gunships to aid their small force in the battle. For more than 17 hours, Fujii repeatedly exposed himself to hostile fire as he left his entrenchment to observe enemy troop positions and direct air strikes against them. At times the group’s survival was so tentative that Fujii was forced to interrupt radio transmittal in order to place suppressive rifle fire on the enemy while at close quarters.

Though wounded and severely fatigued, Fujii’s actions led to the successful defense of the South Vietnamese troops and their encampment.

Then, after a helicopter was finally able to airlift him from the battle, enemy rounds pierced its hull forcing it to crash-land at a friendly camp, where Fujii would spend another two days before being evacuated.

DUFFY

During April 14-15, 1972, Duffy, part of Team 162 Military Assistance Command-Vietnam, was senior advisor to the South Vietnamese 11th Airborne Battalion at Fire Support Base Charlie in South Vietnam. In the days before, the enemy had destroyed the battalion command post, and the 11th’s commander had been killed; Duffy himself was twice wounded.

But instead of being evacuated, Duffy led a two-day defense of the surrounded FSB against a battalion-sized enemy force.

During the attack Duffy moved himself close to the enemy, to an exposed position, in order to call in air strikes. Despite being injured again after being struck by fragments from a recoilless rifle round, Duffy stayed and directed U.S. helicopter gunships onto enemy anti-aircraft and artillery positions.

After a severe, 300-artillery-round attack on the base, Duffy personally ensured the wounded troops were moved to safer positions and distributed ammunition to the remaining defenders.

That afternoon, the enemy began a ground assault on the firebase from all sides. Duffy moved from position to position to spot targets for artillery and to adjust fires. The next morning, after the 11th survived an ambush, Duffy led wounded to an evacuation area while in continual pursuit by the enemy.

By Joe Lacdan, Army News Service

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